Our brain constantly rearranges its circuitry to learn new skills or remember people and experiences. Is it not surprising when we can remember someone from high school but not where we went for dinner a week back?
Researchers from the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) have now found that changes to the structure of a particular sugar molecule in our brain cells could be the reason for the short-term loss of social memory or remembering people and objects.
This study opens doors to understanding a previously unexplored territory of how sugars play an essential role in social memory, especially for conditions such as autism, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia, where it is most affected.
Dr Linda Hsieh-Wilson, the lead author from Caltech, presented the study at the American Chemical Society (ACS) conference on 16 August.
They tweaked a sugar molecule found in the cell structure called glycosaminoglycans (GAG) and found that the neural circuitry and plasticity of the brain altered.
Sugars are a superfamily of molecules that not only make food taste sweet but also offer structural support for cells in our body, among other functions. These sugar molecules form a supporting net around the neurons, called perineuronal nets, which help connect with each other.
Hsieh-Wilson’s team Caltech altered the sulphate patterns – small chemical groups attached to the sugar molecule and observed its effect on the repair of neurons and plasticity affecting social memory.
“GAG molecules impacted the CA2 region of the hippocampus the most, a brain region known to be essential for social memory,” Hsieh-Wilson told Happiest Health.
The perineuronal nets in the brain are dynamic from childhood to adulthood. Hsieh-Wilson says in a statement that the changes observed in manipulating the gene for the particular GAG molecule (chondroitin sulphate), even during early adulthood, could rewire or strengthen synapses.
“Certain forms of the molecule altered the brain’s plasticity. The sulphate groups and structure were altered in response to injury and inhibited regrowth of cells,” says Hsieh-Wilson.
The GAG molecule could be a target to understand and improve brain plasticity, memory and repair.
Read more: Rigid brain – a myth?
Read more: 6 interesting facts about the hippocampus
